In late March, central Queensland potato and vegetable growers and agronomists gathered at Mark Fritz’s property near Bundaberg for a half day field event focussed on soil health, Fall armyworm (FAW) management, and input use efficiencies in vegetable and potato crops. The event provided attendees with the latest research findings, practical demonstrations, and discussions on sustainable farming practices.
A collaboration between Soil Wealth ICP, VegNET and Queensland Department of Primary Industries (QDPI), the event commenced with a barbeque to allow growers and industry representatives to connect and network.
The field walk led by Steph Tabone (AHR) and host grower Mark Fritz examined a recently terminated sunn hemp legume cover crop. The discussion explored the benefits of cover crops for improving soil health and resilience to weather extremes within potato and vegetable farming systems. The field walk also focussed on the role of legumes in nitrogen fixation with discussions on nitrogen contributions, nitrogen cycling, and the importance of termination timing to optimise soil health. Attendees also considered pest and disease management strategies associated with cover cropping.
Following the field walk, Jessy Logan the VegNET Regional Development Officer for the Wide Bay-Burnett region provided an update on project activities including installation of a RapidAIM FAW trap for surveillance of the pest. Jessy also showcased the National Fall Armyworm (FAW) innovation system for the Australian vegetable industry (VG22006) e-hub, including where to find information on recent project trials and FAW trapping data.
Noel Ainsworth (QDPI) presented on the value of soil carbon for productivity, as well as carbon accounting, providing an update on emissions reporting requirements and using carbon accounting tools such as the H-GAF emissions calculator. This session underscored the growing importance of businesses understanding their greenhouse gas emissions footprint to meet reporting requirements.
To wrap up the day, Dr Naomi Diplock (AHR) delivered a session on water and nutrient use efficiencies, providing an update on the Soil Wealth/ICP demonstration site in Bundaberg. Naomi outlined strategies used to align irrigation and nutrient applications with crop requirements to improve crop performance while reducing environmental impact. The discussion also covered spray coverage trials, highlighting investigations aimed at assessing and improving spray coverage and application techniques.
The event concluded with drinks to allow growers and industry representatives to discuss key takeaways from the event, with valuable insights shared among participants, marking the end of a highly informative and collaborative gathering.
“It was a great day with strong grower engagement and plenty of valuable discussions,” Steph said.
“Having growers connect with us after the event to discuss how they can apply some of the learnings from the event was really encouraging.”
Acknowledgments:
Thank you to Mark Fritz and his team for hosting us on his farm and his openness to share his experiences.
Contributions and collaboration between the projects: PotatoLink, Soil Wealth ICP, VegNET and QDPI. Funding from the Hort Innovation potato fresh and processing fund, vegetable fund, melon fund.
